As bad as the bad news sounds for the Fire, strangely it’s not so bad.
The defending Eastern Conference champ has dropped from first into a last-place tie with New England with a league-low 19 points after an 0-for-July record in six matches. It now faces the loss of forward Ante Razov for the season to right-ankle surgery Wednesday.
Fortunately for the Fire, winless in its last nine games, the East is the least of the Major League Soccer conferences this season. The Fire finds itself only one point out of the fourth and final East playoff spot and three points out of sole possession of third. The post-All Star Game portion of the season starts with a well-rested Fire opening a two-game homestand with 2003 MLS Cup foe San Jose at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday at Soldier Field, site of seven of the Fire’s 12 remaining MLS matches.
Razov, 30, has not played for the Fire since injuring his ankle against Columbus on July 3. The Fire’s all-time scoring leader had 10 points (four goals, two assists) in 13 games this season.
“We’ll miss him,” said Fire coach Dave Sarachan. “These guys are a pretty close group, and everyone suspected this was something that needed to be taken care of.”
